Seal



J. A. BYRNE Sept. 3, 1935.

SEAL

FiledJan. 21, 1955 INVENTOR Patented Sept. 3, i935 imi'rso STATES PATENT OFFICE 3 Claims.

This invention relates to seals, and more particularly relates to seals adapted for use by accountants tocontrol securities, vouchers, account books, documents, cash, and the like, while under audit; the seals being adapted to be pasted on the boxes, compartments, folders, or other containers housing the articles involved in the audit to prevent unauthorized therewith.

Heretofore accountants commonly have used ordinary single-ply gummed paper labels to seal the containers, usually placing a signature and date on the label. removed and replaced quite readily without giving any indication of the tampering, and may be removed intact and put to an unauthorized use, which is difficult to detect, and are so fragile that the ordinary handling and use of the containers results in the labels being broken and rendered ineffective.

One of the principal objects of this invention is to provide a seal whereby containers of various kinds and types, and particularly containers and receptacles housing articles under audit, may be sealed against being opened without indication thereof being made apparent by the condition of the seal; and to provide a seal of the character described and which, after being properly applied, cannot be loosened or removed without being torn and destroyed, and preferably not without the accountants signature or private marking thereon being destroyed also; and to provide a seal of the character described which'is simple and inexpensive, convenient and easy to apply properly, and to be broken open in a proper manner which insures destruction of the seal against undetected reuse, and which is so strong and durable as not to tear, break or become loosened or dislodged inadvertently when the container or other receptacle is moved about or handled.

Other objects of this invention will be in part obvious and in part pointed out hereinafter.

In accordance with this invention the seal comprises a relatively strong and tough portion which holds the entire seal intact and prevents inadvertent loosening, breaking or tearing of the seal as a result of ordinary handling of the container or other receptacle to which it is applied, and also comprises a relatively fragile and weak portion so joined to the stronger portion that the seal cannot be removed without the weaker portion being torn.

In order that a clearer understanding of this invention may be had, attention is hereby directed or undetected tampering Such labels, however, can be to the accompanying drawing, forming a part of this application, and illustrating one possible embodiment of this invention, and in which:

Fig. 1 is'a perspective \iew of a closed box having a seal embodying this invention applied there- 5 to, and

Fig. 2 is a plan view of the seal itself, showing the gummed surface thereof.

Similar reference characters refer to similar parts in both views of the drawing. 10

Referring to the drawing, the seal illustrated therein comprises a piece I of relatively light and fragile paper, or other readily tearable material, reenforced about its periphery and across its center with relatively tough and sturdy but flex- 15 ible material 2, such as linen, parchment, or the like, which is pasted or otherwise affixed to the under surface of the piece i. Thus there is exposed on the under surface of the seal the under surface of the reenforcing material 2 and the 20 areas of under surface of the piece I which are not covered by the reenforcing. This entire under surface preferably is gummed so that the seal -may be pasted readily and easily to a container or other receptacle 3, as shown in Fig. 1, and 25 both the reenforcing material and the weaker material adhere to the container. The reenforcing material adhering to the box, or other container, is sufliciently strong to prevent the seal being torn or ruptured by the strains incident to 30 the handling of the container. The weaker portion of the seal, however, is so susceptible to tearing and so securely held to the container by the adhesive that it is sure to be torn when an attempt it made to disengage it from the container. 35

If desired the tearable portion may be further weakened by perforations 4, made in the material at any suitable locations therein, and preferably adjacent the reenforcing materials toward the upper, lower and When 'such weakening perforations are present the tearable material may be of stronger texture than otherwise, since the piece is so weakened by the perforations as to tear when an attempt is made to remove the seal intact.

As a further protection, special protective type paper, or the like, may be used for the tearable material, and may have the protective features that are common to paper used for bank checks, 5o

stock certificates and the like, which paper cannot be duplicated by unauthorized persons, and cannot be wetted or any marking thereon erased or altered without detection.

To facilitate proper removal and breaking of side edges of the seal. 40

the applied seal, tabs 5 may be provided thereon, preferably as extensions of the cross-strip I of the reenforcing material. These tabs are not gummed so that they can be grasped easily and pulled to destroy and break open the seal.

It is intended that the accountant will place his signature and, if desired, the date of seal ing, on the seal in such location that the writing will be torn through when the seal is broken,

and a central location for the writing issuggested for this purpose, the seal preferably, being marked, as at 6, to indicate the appropriate area I, for the signature, and being marked, as at 6, to indicate the appropriate area 9, for the date. A serial'number may also be applied-to each seal as'at In by the manuiacturer to aid in controlling the seals in use and to render the undetected use of forged or. unauthorized seals more 7 Obviously, the shape and size of the seal andthe configuration oi the reeniorcing material and of the exposed gummed areas of tearable mate-v rial may bevaried considerably,'and many varietiesof material may be used for the tearable material and for thenreenforcing material with-l out. sacrificing the attainment of the objects of this invention, and accordingly it is to be understood that all matter contained in the above de-' scripti'on or shown in'the accompanying draw-- 'ing be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting What I claim is: 1. A seal of the character described comprising an easily tearable portion exposed on the under face of the seal and not-easily tearable portions along opposite edges of the easily tearable portion, said-easily tearable portion having weakening perforations.

2. A seal of the character described, comprising a piece of easily tearable material having a portion exposed on the under face of the seal and reenforced marginally with not-easily tearable material aflixed to the under face thereof,

the said exposed portion 0! the easily tearable piece having a line of weakening perforations adjacent the reenforcing materiaL 3. An accountants seal of the, character described, and comprising a piece of easily tearable material having a narrow margin of relatively tough material reenforcing the tearable material against rupture at the edges and having a narrowreenforcing strip of relatively tough materialextending centrally across said piece, relatively extensive portions of said easily tearable material being uncovered by said tough material, the der faces of uncovered portions of said tearable material and of the reeniorce'd areas being gummed to adhere to an article to which the seal is applied, and to cause tearing oi the adhering tearable material when the applied seal is removed from the article.

i JAMES A. BYRNE, 

